FicWad

It was cold, the wind biting through his birdstyle as he searched through the wreckage of the campsite.

For a split second, he wished himself back in the warmth of his home, in the sanctuary he shared with Tal.

But only for a second. His overriding concern at this time was his missing team mate.

"Is there any sign of trouble?" asked Mark.

"Well, leaving all his gear behind isn't a good sign," Jason replied

They paused to consider their options, when Princess' cry announced a signal from Keyop.

This was it. He was close, and they would get him back.

Jason was pleased to be back in the warmth of the Phoenix. It hadn't been a good few weeks. Tal had been away, and he was not only sexually frustrated, but also surprised at just how much he missed him.

**

He was making mistakes. The fine line that he trod, the line between doing his Master's bidding and trying to keep this beautiful world from descending into the hell of his own, was getting harder to balance.

He knew when it had started - the day he fell in love with a human. To be specific, the day he fell in love with Jason.

There was no rule against fraternisation with the humans, it was encouraged in some circumstances. The more half-blood Spectrans on earth, the easier it would be to assimilate the planet.

He sat up. Jason. That was one of the nagging things. He was obviously a half-blood Spectran. It was there in the shape of his eyes, his jawline.

He knew that would be no excuse, however. His Master did not mind occasional liaisons, but he knew that the Great Spirit would never allow him to have a constant lover. He didn't even want to contemplate what would happen if Mala knew.

No. He was Zoltar at present. Tal had to take a back seat.

It was becoming harder and harder. Tal, secure in love, was becoming more and more dominant. Tal was deliberately making mistakes, deliberately pushing the envelope as to what he could and couldn't do without being caught.

Twice today the Spirit had chastised him. That was twice that Zoltar had been forced to expend his energy in keeping Tal hidden.

He knew he had two choices. Either tell Jason the whole truth, or end this at the soonest opportunity.

He didn't want to do either.

He wanted nothing more than to be able to spend the rest of his life with Jason, secure in their sanctuary. He wanted to meet Jason's friends, to be able to with his lover in the open.

He had suggested it to Jason, but he'd been reluctant.

"I can't, Tal. I'm not ready."

Tal understood. He could be patient, as long as he had his Dearling with him.

The past few weeks had been horrendous. The urgent summons to this base, this godawful, cold base, to finish their preparations. He'd had no chance to return to Centre City, to Jason. And, worst of all, the Great Spirit was becoming suspicious of his actions.

He was dedicated to the conquest of Earth, for the glory of Spectra. But he loved Earth. From the first time he set foot on the planet, he'd loved it. Wanted it. Wanted to protect it. Those stupid Earthlings. They hadn't taken care of this jewel. Only now where they starting to take steps to reverse the damage done.

Spectrans had tried that, but it had also been too little too late. His planet had once been like this, before arrogance had despoiled it.

He was determined this would not happen to Earth.

All he had to do was to defeat G-Force.

The alarms sounded and he stood and pulled on his mask. It was time. This time, he had to win.

The sooner he won, the sooner he could go back home, to Jason.

And he stopped suddenly, shivering. He couldn't remember when Jason had come to represent home. This was dangerous. He would have to be very careful when he spoke to the Spirit.

He couldn't put his Dearling in danger.

**
When the G-Force team jumped down from the Phoenix, some trick of the light caught the visor of the Condor's helmet. It turned it transparent, and Zoltar saw, for the first time, his face clearly.

His heart screamed as he recognised the face of his lover. All the clues he had noticed about his younger lover slipped into place. Their neatly dovetailing timetables. The coincidence of the name of his Dearling, and those of his friends..

He had to get out of there. The Commander of G-Force came towards him.

"You've won," Zoltar whispered. "Let me go." If he could get out of there, his life with Jason was still possible. He could find a way to make it work. But not if Jason knew who he was.

"I've never seen you without your mask," was all he heard.

"No! Not that!" But it was too late.

In that split second when his mask was ripped off, Zoltar was face to face with G-Force, but it was once face that caused time to stop for him. For the first time, he saw his enemies without the mask with it's tinted eyeholes.

He looked, for a moment, directly into the eyes of Jason. In those eyes was recognition and horror, as well as indescribable pain, and Zoltar saw his lips form one word. "Tal".

Zoltar knew that his own eyes mirrored those same emotions as their final secrets were stripped away. He raised his hands to face and spun away, hair flaring out, as the Luminous One's blinding lights stunned G-Force. And his heart broke as he knew that this was the end.

In the midst of the light, the noise, two distinct screams were ripped from throats more used to speaking of love together.

They roused slowly.

"Was it just me or did I see Zoltar with long blonde hair?" asked Mark

Jason barely registered the conversation and only just managed to keep functioning as they moved back into the Phoenix.

He heard Tiny laughing at the suggestion that Zoltar could be a female, and Jason wanted to echo the laughter.

He could certainly attest to the fact that Zoltar was all man.